Unholy Murder

by Lynda La Plante

  ‘I hope Barnes isn’t watching this!’ Stanley exclaimed as the commissioner continued.

  ‘Although Sister Melissa’s death has been deemed an unlawful killing by the coroner and a thorough investigation has taken place, I’m sad to say there is insufficient evidence to identify those responsible. However, Sister Melissa’s death will remain on file, and should any new evidence come to light the investigation will be reopened. I’ll now hand over to Archbishop Malone to say a few words.’

  Malone stepped forward. ‘I would like to thank the commissioner, DCS Salmon and his detectives for their hard work and dedication in investigating Sister Melissa Bailey’s death. When I was the diocesan bishop, I often visited the Sisters of Mercy convent up until the day it sadly had to close. To the credit of the now departed Mother Superior Adele Delaney and all the sisters who lived and worked there, I found it to be a happy and peaceful place where orphaned children were lovingly cared for. I’m relieved to say there is no evidence that anyone in the convent was involved in Sister Melissa’s death. However, I hope that one day the person, or persons, responsible will be caught and brought to justice.’

  ‘Why did Bishop Meade commit suicide?’ a journalist asked.

  ‘Since his death, I have been made aware Bishop Meade was suffering from severe depression. I can’t go into the details as his suicide is currently being investigated by the diocese and there will be a coroner’s inquest. However, I can tell you it is not connected to the death of Sister Melissa Bailey. Thank you for your time and may God be with you.’ He made the sign of the cross.

  Jane felt sickened by Malone’s lies, but knew she could never betray Father Chris by revealing the truth.

  The commissioner stepped forward. ‘I would like to add that the tragic death of the Bromley News Shopper journalist, Rebecca Rogers, is not connected to the Melissa Bailey investigation and a man has been arrested and charged with her murder. Now, unless there are any further questions, we need to make our way to Gatwick airport.’

  The journalists, cameramen and photographers quickly packed their belongings away and hurried out of the room to make their way to Gatwick.

  ‘What a load of shite. They water it down by saying “her death”, when they know full well Missy was murdered!’ Boon exclaimed.

  Stanley shook his head in disgust and turned the television off. ‘It’s just as Barnes predicted – a fucking cover-up!’

  Boon frowned. ‘As I see it, the commissioner is perverting the course of justice. We should do something about it.’

  ‘There’s nothing we can do, Boony,’ Jane said.

  ‘The coroner said it was an unlawful killing – that can’t just be ignored!’ Boon argued.

  Jane understood why Boon was upset but thought his remarks naïve. ‘The commissioner knew he couldn’t suppress Dr Pullen’s post-mortem statement or the coroner’s verdict of unlawful killing, especially after Becky’s article in the News Shopper revealed our investigation to the public.’

  Stanley nodded. ‘The Met solicitors would have told the commissioner any criminal proceedings were futile, especially as Mother Adele and Bishop Meade are dead, and Sister Margaret is immune from prosecution due to her state of mind.’

  Jane put her hand on Boon’s shoulder. ‘You win some, you lose some . . . you move on.’

  ‘Bloody hell, that’s a bit rich coming from you,’ Stanley remarked.

  Jane shrugged. ‘Maybe, but as much I respect him, I don’t want to become like DCS Barnes. He’s made me realise bitterness will eat away at you and end up clouding your judgement. We need to put this investigation behind us, not let it tear us apart.’

  ‘Sorry to interrupt,’ the duty sergeant said as he entered the room. ‘I thought you might like to know that Barry May has been arrested for assaulting his wife. She’s in Queen Mary’s Hospital with two black eyes and broken ribs. She said to tell DS Tennison she wants to make a statement and press charges against him.’

  *

  Returning from the supermarket, Tony Barnes walked into his living room carrying two bags of shopping. His wife was sitting on the sofa watching the television as Pope John Paul II descended the steps of a plane at Gatwick. He was dressed in a white skull cap, cassock and pellegrina, girded with a fringed white fascia. A large pectoral cross hung from a gold cord around his neck. On reaching the concrete, he fell to his knees and kissed the ground.

  Barnes felt repulsed as he watched Archbishop Malone help the Pope up and then kissed his hand. He dropped the shopping then turned off the television.

  ‘Sorry, but I can’t bear watching that crap,’ he snorted.

  She frowned. ‘Well, I want to watch it, like thousands of others. History is being made today and you should appreciate it.’

  ‘That’s Malone with the Pope and I can’t bear the sight of him! Yet again, he’s made a fool of me!’

  ‘For Christ’s sake, Tony, let it go. You’ve allowed him to eat away at your soul for nearly thirty years now. You’re retired. You need to put the police service behind you and move on . . . for both our sakes.’ She turned the television back on.

  The commentator expressed his thoughts. ‘There is nothing sentimental about this pope. He comes to proclaim the truth as he wrote in a poem twenty years ago. “If I have the truth in me it will break out one day – I cannot repent.”’

  Barnes opened his wallet and removed the business card The Times investigative journalist had given him, then left the room.

  ‘Where are you going?’ his wife shouted after him.

  ‘To proclaim the truth!’

  *

  After interviewing Barry May, Jane went to speak with Stanley. He was watching the Pope’s visit on the television and drinking a glass of whisky.

  ‘The Pope’s just arrived at Victoria station on the Gatwick train. Malone is with him. The smug son of a bitch is waving, and smiling to everyone,’ Stanley said.

  ‘He’ll probably be made a cardinal after arranging the visit,’ Jane remarked.

  ‘Fancy a quick snifter?’ Stanley asked, holding up his glass.

  ‘Go on then,’ she replied.

  Stanley opened his bottom desk drawer, removed a bottle of Glenmorangie, poured some into a glass and handed it to Jane.

  ‘That’s the same whisky Barnes likes on special occasions.’

  ‘I know, he left it in his filing cabinet. Be a shame to let it go to waste,’ Stanley grinned.

  ‘You thieving git,’ Jane laughed as she raised her glass. ‘Cheers.’

  Stanley raised his glass in turn. ‘Cheers. I wonder if the Pope and Malone will discuss Bishop Meade’s suicide?’

  ‘Probably, then sweep it under the carpet,’ Jane replied.

  ‘They’re all lying bastards. I reckon Bishop Meade would have confessed if we’d had the chance to interview him.’

  ‘For what it’s worth, I don’t think he was involved in Melissa’s death,’ Jane said.

  ‘Are you being serious?’ Stanley asked.

  ‘Yes, it’s just a gut feeling,’ Jane replied. ‘We all have our own views about what happened to Melissa and who killed her, but only she, and the person who killed her, know the truth. We worked hard and did our job to the best of our ability. One day the abuse and cover-ups carried out by the Catholic Church will come out. When it does, we can hold our heads high and say, “I told you, but you didn’t listen.”’

  ‘You and I might be long retired before that day comes,’ Stanley replied. ‘How’d it go with Barry May?’

  ‘Boon’s charging him with grievous bodily harm.’

  ‘Boony’s turning into a good detective.’

  ‘Well, he’s learning from the best, isn’t he?’ Jane grinned.

  Stanley laughed. ‘Don’t flatter yourself . . . it’s me he models himself on.’

  Jane raised her eyes. ‘God help us, then. Do you mind if I head off home? My house is in desperate need of some TLC, so I’m going to multitask with a paint brush in one hand and a
large glass of wine in the other.’

  ‘One for the road?’ Stanley asked, lifting the bottle.

  ‘Just a wee dram,’ Jane replied.

  Stanley poured some whisky into both glasses. ‘How’s things between you and Nick Durham?’

  ‘He made it quite clear that he never wants to see me again. I haven’t heard a word from him since and I don’t expect to.’

  ‘Sorry about that, but it’s probably for the best. And there’s plenty more fish in the sea.’

  ‘Like I said before – you win some . . . you lose some.’

  ‘And then you move on,’ Stanley said, and they both raised their glasses.

  ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

  I would like to thank Nigel Stoneman and Tory Macdonald, the team I work with at La Plante Global.

  All the forensic scientists and members of the Met Police who help with my research. I could not write without their valuable input.

  Cass Sutherland for his valuable advice on police procedures and forensics.

  The entire team at my publisher, Bonnier Books UK, who work together to have my books edited, marketed, publicised and sold. A special thank you to Kate Parkin and Bill Massey for their great editorial advice and guidance.

  Francesca Russell and Blake Brooks, who have introduced me to the world of social media – my Facebook Live sessions have been so much fun.

  The audio team, Jon Watt and Laura Makela, for bringing my entire backlist to a new audience in audiobooks. Thanks also for giving me my first podcast series, Listening to the Dead, which can be downloaded globally.

  Allen and Unwin in Australia and Jonathan Ball in South Africa – thank you for doing such fantastic work with my books.

  All the reviewers, journalists, bloggers and broadcasters who interview me, write reviews and promote my books. Thank you for your time and work.

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  Lynda La Plante was born in Liverpool. She trained for the stage at RADA and worked with the National Theatre and RSC before becoming a television actress. She then turned to writing and made her breakthrough with the phenomenally successful TV series Widows. She has written over thirty international novels, all of which have been bestsellers, and is the creator of the Anna Travis, Lorraine Page and Trial and Retribution series. Her original script for the much-acclaimed Prime Suspect won awards from BAFTA, Emmy, British Broadcasting and Royal Television Society, as well as the 1993 Edgar Allan Poe Award.

  Lynda is one of only three screenwriters to have been made an honorary fellow of the British Film Institute and was awarded the BAFTA Dennis Potter Best Writer Award in 2000. In 2008, she was awarded a CBE in the Queen’s Birthday Honours List for services to Literature, Drama and Charity.

  Join the Lynda La Plante Readers’ Club at

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  Dear Reader,

  Thank you very much for picking up Unholy Murder, the seventh book in the Tennison series. I hope you enjoyed reading the book as much as I enjoyed writing it.

  Throughout the series, Jane Tennison has solved many kinds of mysteries, but in Unholy Murder I wanted to present her with a different kind of challenge – solving a murder which was committed almost two decades ago. Faced with a situation where those involved in the crime may be untraceable, unwell, or no longer alive, not to mention the challenges of investigating a crime under the watchful eye of a powerful institution, Jane finds herself having to think outside of the box. I enjoyed exploring the different forensic technologies that would have been available to her in the 1980s, and how she would use the information they provided along with her detective’s instincts to follow the trail to the truth.

  If you enjoyed Unholy Murder, then please do keep an eye out for news about the next book in the series, which will be coming soon. And in the meantime, early next year sees the publication of the next book in my new series featuring DC Jack Warr, in which Jack finds himself embroiled in an international drugs operation, art theft – and a murder investigation . . .

  The first two books in the Jack Warr series, Buried and Judas Horse, are available now. And if you want to catch up with the Tennison series, the first six novels – Tennison, Hidden Killers, Good Friday, Murder Mile, The Dirty Dozen and Blunt Force – are all available to buy in paperback, ebook and audio. I’ve been so pleased by the response I’ve had from the many readers who have been curious about the beginnings of Jane’s police career. It’s been great fun for me to explore how she became the woman we know in middle and later life from the Prime Suspect series.

  If you would like more information on what I’m working on, about the Jane Tennison thriller series or the new series featuring Jack Warr, you can visit www.bit.ly/LyndaLaPlanteClub where you can join my Readers’ Club. It only takes a few moments to sign up, there are no catches or costs and new members will automatically receive an exclusive message from me. Zaffre will keep your data private and confidential, and it will never be passed on to a third party. We won’t spam you with loads of emails, just get in touch now and again with news about my books, and you can unsubscribe any time you want. And if you would like to get involved in a wider conversation about my books, please do review Unholy Murder on Amazon, on GoodReads, on any other e-store, on your own blog and social media accounts, or talk about it with friends, family or reader groups! Sharing your thoughts helps other readers, and I always enjoy hearing about what people experience from my writing.

  With many thanks again for reading Unholy Murder, and I hope you’ll return for the next in the series.

  With my very best wishes,

  Lynda

  First published in the UK in 2021 by Zaffre

  This ebook edition published in 2021 by

  ZAFFRE

  An imprint of Bonnier Books UK

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  Copyright © La Plante Global Ltd, 2021

  Cover design by Bonnier Books UK

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  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.

  This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, organisations, places and events are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or locales is entirely coincidental.

  A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

  ISBN: 978-1-78576-545-2

  Hardback ISBN: 978-1-78576-542-1

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